You Are The Cure
by Songstress Lacus
Summary: Dr. Cloud Strife was tasked to do a research of discovering a new drug for Geostigma. Given with the situation he is in right now, Cloud finds himself torn between his passion for science and his love for his test subject. AU.


**You Are The Cure**

Chapter One: Disease

**Author's Note:** So here's a new fanfic I came up with just this morning. When I was supposed to study for exams, here I am writing a new piece just because my body refused to study and I wanted to create something with my mind so I came up with this. Some of you may not understand this but I will try my best to update fast so I could give you a clearer picture on my story. Enjoy!

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><p>It was another ordinary day for Dr. Cloud Strife as he exited his apartment and made his way to his favourite coffee shop Seventh Heaven.<p>

Cloud worked as a resident physician in Midgar General Hospital specializing in the field of internal medicine. He is currently in his first year and a lot of senior residents already credited him for his expertise in the field of medicine. In fact, he wasn't really expecting to be a doctor in the first place. All he wanted was to finish his degree in Biology and become a researcher. When he became a candidate for latin honors in college, a prestigious medical school offered him a scholarship which he gladly accepted. Four years in medical school earned him another achievement of having a best thesis for discovering an alternative way to eradicate bacterial strains in a newly-discovered disease. The blessings just kept on coming for Cloud when he graduated with honors and was immediately accepted into Midgar General Hospital as an intern.

After a year of internship, Cloud took the licensure exam and became a full pledged physician. He was given the freedom to choose the field he would specialize and he chose a field where he could conduct a research that may have a contribution to the expanse of medicine. During his first year, he is guided by his mentor Dr. Vincent Valentine and he was easily impressed by Cloud's initiative and intellect in dealing with different situations of the patients assigned to their service. Cloud indeed is doing a great job in the profession of his choice.

The door opened as he entered the coffee shop, earning a few glances from the customers inside. He found Seventh Heaven to be his favourite place since it's near to his work place and his apartment as well. He has been an avid customer that he made friends with the owner and as well as with the employees as well. Cloud has never grown tired of spending his time in this place and he already made it a part of his daily itinerary.

"Good morning Dr. Strife! Having the usual coffee?" The barista greeted.

Cloud glanced up the menu board and spoke, "Maybe I'll make a change for today, I'll have the choco-caramel coffee."

"All right, is that all doc?" The barista clarified. "You might also want to try our new blueberry pancakes?"

"Okay, I'll have those too." He nodded at the man.

After Cloud paid the bill and thanked the barista, he went over to his usual spot near the window where he could read his daily newspaper. While his interest on current events was not that much, he would always turn to the page with the science-related articles. His attention turned to the article on the latest Geostigma outbreak and that research is still ongoing for a drug that could cure this disease. As his read the article, he suddenly felt hot liquid drop on his pants and this startled him.

"Oh sir I'm so sorry!" The brown-haired lady apologized as she started to wipe his pants with a tissue.

"It's okay miss... I..." He suddenly felt speechless upon seeing her. His eyes fixed on her and not on the commotion she caused.

"Tifa, what the hell!" Cid yelled and went to her direction, "That's the second time you've done this."

"I'm so sorry boss, I promise not to do it again." She said anxiously as she cleaned up the mess.

"That's what you said the last time," The blonde man sighed heavily, "When will you ever learn?"

"I'm sorry! Please don't fire me." She begged with utmost sincerity, her hands clasped together.

"Sorry doctor, she's a new employee. I just hired her last week and she already made a few mistakes." He apologized on her behalf.

"Look Cid, it's okay. My apartment is just a short walk away, I'll just change." He said, dismissing the fact that his employee stirred up trouble.

"If you say so."

Cloud made his way back to his apartment to change his outfit. While he browsed for a new pair of pants, his mind couldn't stop thinking about her. Dark brown hair, wine-colored eyes and ivory skin, he never saw such beauty before and it left him in deep thought. He didn't really care about the fact of her spilling coffee on his pants but he was somewhat interested in getting to know her.

"Clumsy girl." He muttered to himself. "But she's a looker."

After finally changing his clothes, Cloud finally made his way to his work place. As we went inside the hospital, a lot of personnel greeted him warmly and he eagerly smiled back at them. Rumours even spread that he was the hot issue in a certain ward dominated by female nurses. Not only he was intelligent, he was also good-looking which earned him the attention of a few co-workers. He was never really interested in getting involved with people romantically, for now all he cared about was his work and learning new discoveries that could expound his knowledge in the field of medicine.

A few moments, he finally arrived at the emergency department where he is currently assigned for another week. The young doctor immediately went to his station and waited for the list of patients to be endorsed to his service. He nearly dosed off and his mind went back to the events earlier in the coffee shop where he had his first encounter with such a fine lady. He said to himself that he needed to go back to that place so he could at least ask for her name.

Suddenly his best friend Dr. Zack Fair arrived at the station, greeting him with one of his cheerful smiles.

"Hey Cloud, what are you doing here?" Zack called, interrupted his train of thought.

"I'm assigned here in the emergency department." He replied, hiding the annoyed expression on his face.

"Really? For all I know I'm the one assigned here for this week." He said as he took as seat beside him.

"If you're assigned here then where am I?" The blonde asked as his brows furrowed.

Zack just chuckled at his expression, "Seems like someone forgot to check the bulletin board."

Cloud spun his seat and checked the bulletin board behind him. He silently cursed himself for not being able to check ahead of time. He read writings on the board and found his name with his newly assigned area.

'_Cloud Strife – Infectious disease department'_

"Oh crap," He said as looked at the time, he was already thirty minutes late for duty. He wasted no time and grabbed his things, "I'll see you later Zack."

"Sure thing buddy."

Cloud practically ran through the hospital corridors just to get to his assigned area. When he finally arrived, Dr. Vincent Valentine was standing near the entrance obviously waiting for him.

"Where have you been Dr. Strife? You're almost an hour late." Vincent said as he glanced on his watch.

"I'm sorry Dr. Valentine. I wasn't able to check the new schedule, I still thought I was assigned in the Emergency Department." Cloud explained, still catching his breath.

"I apologize too for the short notice in the change of area, but I assigned you here because I have a favour to ask you." He requested and pointed a seat in front of him, "Have a seat."

Cloud immediately complied and took his seat, "Give me the details."

"Mr. Rufus Shinra, CEO of the Shinra Pharmaceutical Company is going to pay a visit and they are looking for outstanding doctors who are willing to do a research in helping them discover a new drug." The older doctor began.

"Okay," Was all he said, implying him to go on.

"We all know that there is an outbreak of Geostigma right? It's a contagious disease affecting people aged 18 – 35 and this condition is transmitted via blood and body fluids upon direct contact with an infected person. You understand what I mean." Vincent continued.

"Get to your point."

"I want you to do a research conducting a cure for this disease. You will gather data from a patient with this condition such as signs and symptoms and as well as collect strains that we could use for us to be able to synthesize a new drug to eradicate the agent and lessen the prevalence of Geostigma." He remarked directly.

"That's it?" Cloud asked, his voice grew tense, "Why me?"

"Everybody knows you have potential Dr. Strife, with the credentials you have and the feedback from the other doctors about your performance. I know you're the most suitable man for this job." He explained.

He paused for a moment before he finally spoke, "I'll think about it."

"Who knows this could be another big break for you after your college thesis." He continued, trying to convince the younger doctor, "This is could bring your name to an even brighter light."

"Maybe." He just shrugged his shoulders in response, "I'll give you my decision tomorrow."

It was already lunch time when Cloud told Zack about the project that was proposed to him by his mentor. Zack, being his best friend since medical school, wasn't surprised that Cloud was chosen to be in the research since he knows that this is his expertise.

"Dr. Valentine chose you to conduct a research on discovering a new drug? That's a big project Cloud." Zack praised the other man.

"I don't know Zack, seems pretty big for me to handle." He stated, making him doubt himself for a moment.

"Come on Cloud! We all know you got the brains to do that research, all you need is a little push." He said to him convincingly.

"The problem is, where will I get a person infected with Geostigma? We all know that patients diagnosed with this disease are withheld of their identity for confidential purposes. You know, 'they-who-shall-not- be-named." Cloud told him his concern.

"Hey, I'll help you out okay? My ex-girlfriend Cissnei is working as a nurse in the infectious disease department, I'm sure she can give us some information." The raven haired man answered him.

"I thought you're going to ignore her for the rest of your life?"

"Well, since I'm helping my best friend on his research so why not cross some boundaries." He gave him a smile, "And it's not I'm going to flirt with her again, she's still a bitch to me you know."

"Whatever Zack. Thanks for the help anyway."

It was almost five in the afternoon when Cloud went for his afternoon break. He went immediately to Seventh Heaven so he could have cup of coffee to boost his energy levels for the next few hours of his duty. After he ordered his favourite cup of coffee, he took his out his tablet so he could do a little research. After a little browse, he came upon this familiar article the talked about the disease of his concern, Geostigma. He lazily read the article and tried to obtain some details about the condition.

_Geostigma is a disease affecting people usually at 18 – 35 years of age with a higher incidence on males. Other factors in the prevalence of this disease include smoking, alcoholism, use of illegal drugs and even illnesses that may depress the immune system of an individual._

_The mode of transmission of this disease is by direct contact with the infected patient thought blood and other body fluids. Transmission is possible via open wounds in the skin, mucus membranes such as in the eyes and even by sexual contact._

_Signs and symptoms include cough, high grade fever, body weakness, headache, sore throat, a decrease in appetite and weight loss. Severity of this condition may lead to a generalized spread of infection in the body via the blood stream that would eventually reach the brain, causing a decline in level of consciousness and a coma. Other vital organs such as the lungs and the kidney may also be affected. The cause of death among these patients is usually acute respiratory failure._

_Laboratory studies are conducted to diagnose this disease and a presence of the specialized G-004 cells in the blood stream. Usually a number of 200mg/dL and above will confirm that the patient has Geostigma._

_Patients that are diagnosed with this disease that are usually confined in hospitals under a different diagnosis for confidentiality reasons. Their identities are also withheld for their protection._

_There is still no cure for Geostigma. Further research is still to be conducted._

_By: Dr. Vincent Valentine, chief of Pathology Department, Midgar General Hospital_

Cloud sighed at the information he managed to obtain by the article he just read. He slumped on his chair and his mind flew in different directions. Suddenly his body felt tired and he even thought of skipping out his evening shift. When he was about to doze off, he heard a feminine voice that snapped him from his fatigued state.

"Here's your coffee Dr. Strife." The voice interfered with his thoughts.

"Thanks," He muttered, his gaze fell on her bosom to read her nameplate, "Tifa."

Tifa felt herself blush, this is the first time a customer called her by her first name, "Oh, uhm, you're welcome doctor. Enjoy your meal."

"Hey," He called her and she looked back at him, "Why don't you sit down for a moment, you looked stressed out."

She complied with his request and told him her concern, "I haven't got enough sleep."

"I've been watching you for a while now, you always look dishevelled." He described her condition, messy hair, dark circles beneath her eyes and a tired facial feature that even her makeup couldn't conceal, "Do you have insomnia?"

"I don't think so." She shook her head in reply.

"Then why do you always look so tired?"

Before she could give out her answer, her boss Cid called for her attention, "Tifa, an order in table two. Get your lazy ass over here."

"I'm sorry, I'll talk to you some other time." She whispered to him and got up to return to her post.

Cloud approached Cid with much concern. He could tell he went a little overboard on how he treated his employee and he felt like he needed to do something about it. He just couldn't bear to see such a beautiful lady overworking herself just because of her strict boss.

"Hey, don't stress her out too much." He requested with a stern voice.

"Well it's not my fault that she's a slacker." Cid sputtered, "I just hired her because she's got the looks, maybe it'll bring more customers."

"If that's your basis, then you might as well turn this coffee shop into a night club then." Cloud remarked at him annoyingly.

"Hey she's none of your concern, unless you're attracted to her."

"I'm not," He obviously lied, "Just interested."

"Doesn't that mean the same thing?" The other man questioned him back, "Classy doctors like you don't fall for clumsy waitresses such as herself."

"Right." He uttered and turned to another direction, "Anyway, I have to head back to work."

The night flew flight quite fast and it was almost midnight. Two figures of a man and a woman appeared in a dark alley, with their bodies against each other and the expression on their faces depicted lust and desire for each other. The man is tall and has a muscular built and blonde hair while the woman beneath him had chocolate-colored hair, a slender body and an angelic face that any man would long for. The man kissed her neck and she allowed him to gain more access as she tilted her head for him.

"How much babe?" The man whispered against her ear.

"Depends, how much you got?" She coaxed the man with a rather seductive voice, running her hands around his back.

"I can guarantee you a hundred gil in the first hour." He said, a hand roamed underneath her thigh.

"Deal." A smile appeared on her red-tinted lips.

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><p><strong>Author's Note: <strong>So I used Geostigma as a form of HIV/AIDS disease but to reduce the stigma of the prominent disease I decided to use another term. This fanfic is a little rushed so I may have made a few mistakes. I hope you understand. Please do leave a review and tell me what you think.


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